Fulton J. Sheen was born 8 May 1895 in El Paso, Ill. He attended St. Viator College in Bourbonnais, Ill., Saint Paul Seminary in Minn., from which he was ordained 20 September 1919, the Catholic University of America, the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium, from which he received a doctorate of philosophy, and then the Pontificium Collegium Internationale Angelicum in Rome, from which he received a doctorate in sacred theology. Rev. Sheen was briefly a parish priest at St. Patrick's church in the Diocese of Peoria before returning to the Catholic University of America to teach. In 1930 Rev. Sheen began a weekly radio broadcast called the Catholic Hour, which was extremely popular for the next twenty years. In 1951, Rev. Sheen transitioned to television with Life is Worth Living, a weekly show filmed in New York City, which was broadcast until 1957. In 1958, Rev. Sheen became the Director of the Society for the Propagation of the Faith and remained there until 1966, when he was appointed Bishop of Rochester on 26 October. Bishop Sheen resigned in 1969, and was then appointed Archbishop of the Titular See of Newport (Wales) by Pope Paul VI. Archbishop Sheen died 9 December 1979 of heart disease and was interred at Saint Patrick's Cathedral in New York City.

Through his radio and television shows, Fulton J. Sheen reached a wide audience and is considered the first televangelist. He was charismatic and humorous, and offered life lessons. He also addressed political issues, speaking out strongly against Hitler, Stalin, and the Vietnam War. He wrote more than 70 books as well as numerous articles and columns. The Cause for Canonization of Fulton Sheen was opened in 2002, and in 2012 the Vatican recognized his life as one of heroic virtue, an important step in the canonization process.

The Society for the Propagation of the Faith was started in 1822 as a way to seek prayer and support for Catholic missionary work. The goals of the Society are to raise awareness of the needs of the church, encourage prayer for missions and the people they serve, and encourage monetary donation to missions. Missions are considered to be places where the church does not exist or the Gospels have not been preached, where the church is not firmly established, or where the church is harassed by governments. Monetary donations go to mission churches and chapels, Catholic schools, orphanages, medical clinics, and other aspects of missionary work, as well as the administration of the Society itself. The Society, which is headquartered in New York City, is now a part of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States.

Edith C. Grissing was born July 1891 in New Jersey. She lived in Montclair, NJ, probably with her mother Kathleen. She had a sister, who married Joseph J. Bahr of Verona, NJ, and a brother, Edward L. Grissing of Glen Head, NY. She donated substantial amounts of money to the Society of the Propagation of the Faith from at least 1957-1970, although the total amount and source of the funds is unknown, and asked that after her death, in lieu of flowers, contributions to the Society be made in her name. Edith C. Grissing died 23 May 1979.

Sources: Fulton J. Sheen, Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulton_J._Sheen accessed 2 April 2013. Society for the Propagation of the Faith welcome page, Pontifical Mission Societies of the United States: http://www.onefamilyinmission.org/society-propfaith.html, accessed 2 April 2013. Grissing, Edith C. Obituary 5 -- no title. (1979, May 22). New York Times (1923-Current File). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/120877315?accountid=13793, 2 April 2013.